Lessons from Logan

Dearest Rachel –

When I agreed to allow Logan to move in with us, there were a few things that I was considering in the back of my mind. It certainly wasn’t that we needed the rent money – although, with that being said, we may well have deprived someone else that needed it more than we did in these trying economic times. I thought that it would be nice for Daniel to have a friend at his side on a more consistent basis, as he deals with your absence in his own peculiar way. Additionally, since Logan has himself a regular job, I thought that this work ethic of his might encourage Daniel to do likewise, despite the fact that he knows very well that gainful employment is not necessary for me, ever since you graciously allowed me to retire a couple years ago (and considering his observations of my struggles with Mohinder, I can understand his distaste for the work farce in general aside from that).

What never crossed my mind was that Logan would have things that he could teach me, just as much as he might Daniel. While I know that his experiences in dealing with similar day-to-day issues that we all are party to would be different from ours – and some of the techniques for doing so that were ingrained in him through his upbringing might be improvements upon our own – it wasn’t a thought that occurred to me until it all actually came up. But even the youngest people in our lives can teach us things from time to time, and while I might have been unprepared for it, I’d like to think that I’m more than willing to accept instruction from even the most unlikely of teachers such as he.

Now, the first thing wasn’t so much a lesson as it was a simple offer of assistance. Last night, as Kevin was arriving, I hadn’t prepared anything for dinner. At best, I think I had assumed that we would go out to some restaurant, although I had put almost no thought into the matter by the time he called to let me know he was but ten minutes away. However, it turns out that Logan had gotten it into his head to make a casserole for the three of us. Believe me, I was grateful for the opportunity to not have to think of a mealtime solution.

Of course, Kevin’s arrival threw a wrench into Logan’s plan, as he hadn’t planned on serving so many (not that it mattered, as there ultimately turned out to be more than sufficient food for the four of us – more on that later), and the timing was a little less than ideal, as his arrival more or less coincided with when the dish was to be taken out of the oven. Still, despite it getting just a bit tepid as we got Kevin settled in the house, we managed to enjoy it, for the most part. Daniel suggested some additional spices to use in a future iteration of the dish, as he considered it to be rather bland, and Logan took these with a surprising amount of grace and patience; “I’m open to suggestions for making it better.”

I think that, despite being accustomed to how the two of us will occasionally approach a new dish with all the intensity of judges on Iron Chef, I would probably not have reacted to these suggestions with quite the equanimity Logan did last night. While some of this may come from experience in his family’s restaurant – and from what I know of any sort of retail establishment, we are by no means the worst of customers (indeed, we will, when we’re made aware of it, try hard not to be ‘that guy,’ although this was not one of those times, I’m afraid) – it was still an impressive level of even-temperedness on his part.

***

While we were eating, Daniel asked me to fill Kevin in on Friday’s escapade with Alexa, and how everything fell apart. Logan pointed out that if I downloaded a picture from her, I could look her up through Google Images. Well, while I’d blocked her (and thus lost the conversation history in Google Chat), I had saved a copy of the chat before doing so, including a photo or two. Lo and behold, the picture matched with one from the Twitter feed of one Miss Mary Moody, who is apparently all over social media (including less savory areas, such as OnlyFans and PornHub, according to the search). So that proves that ‘Alexa’ was nothing more than a scam identity.

I do wish I’d known about this little trick sooner; it might have saved me a fair amount of aggravation with a number of these girls. It might also explain the insistence of some for pictures from me, as it’s possible that some of the more tech-savvy might also be doing some research on me in turn. Still, better late than never; I may just do a little research on Aileen, and even Yvonne (we haven’t spoken in some time, but she did contact me after a lengthy silence to admit things were taking longer than she’d expected) to confirm whether either of them are real or not… and react accordingly.

Now, this lesson shouldn’t come as nearly the surprise; the younger generation are likely to be more up-to-date on technology than someone like you or I (remember complaining about your computer science minor was already obsolete even by the time we got married?). Still, it’s quite the stride over the knowledge I’d already had. It would have been interesting to have heard about it the day before, and gotten the girls’ reaction about who ‘Alexa’ really was the night before, but hey, at least I know now.

***

The final lesson came after dinner. While cleaning up the dishes, Logan pointed out to me that the casserole dish might as well just sit with soapy water in it overnight, at which point all the caked-on stuff will come off much more easily. Considering, again, that his family runs a restaurant, I’m not about to argue the point. What I didn’t expect was his advice that I not put the leftovers (and yes, there were leftovers – that casserole was big enough for the four of us, and apart from Daniel, we’re all pretty big guys) away in the refrigerator right away. According to him, putting something in there while it’s still hot – and I don’t remember the specifics as to why – could cause problems with the refrigerator. Better to wait until they at least cooled down to room temperature before putting them away.

So, in accordance with his recommendations, I set the leftovers aside, and left the container on the kitchen counter, to be dealt with later. I was a little bit concerned, because I figured I would forget about it if I did that. Unfortunately, my concerns proved to be well-founded, as I forgot about them until I was in bed already. However, when I went to throw on a robe, and pad out to the kitchen to check, he had already put the Tupperware container away in the fridge.

In short, he’s responsible enough to make me look bad.

He’s spending the day with his folks, as they have preparation’s to make around the house before celebrating Rosh Hashanah. But I need to make a note to thank him for everything when he gets back; both the cooking and the cleanup – particularly putting away the leftovers I forgot about – as well as the new tech insight. I need to let him know that there are some things I can learn from him, as long as I’m willing to listen.

Anyway, that was last evening for me; this upcoming week may prove challenging in terms of keeping you up to date, but I’ll do my best. Until next time, keep an eye on me, and wish me luck. I’m going to need it.